One Legend, Two Destinies
by Grayswandir
Summary: The conclusion of the Destiny War has brought uncertainty to Van's life. Perhaps Dr. J's machinations can help fix that... future yaoi/slash
1. The Theory

Title: One Legend, Two Destinies  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandoms: Gundam Wing, Escaflowne  
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and Escaflowne are owned by Bandai/Sunrise.  
Pairings: past friendship Van/Hitomi, some het, mostly slash, to be listed as revealed

GW VoE

Chapter Zero: The Theory

_Fate and Destiny._

_They are supposedly the guiding forces in the universe._

_Fate. A means to an end. The ending or the beginning of a legacy._

_Destiny. An action that you are driven to perform._

_Often one is told that one's fate and destiny cannot be changed._

_But what if two distinct people lived in the same body? If one started as one being and was suddenly stripped of that identity to be replaced by another, would the new entity have a new fate and destiny? Or would it simply continue to carry out the original one?_

_If the former is true, what happens when the original persona returns to power? Does that leave the new one intact and simply displace its destiny? Or does it melt together with that of the original?_

_If the latter is true, were there truly two destinies to begin with? Or were both merely branches that stemmed from the original?_

_Then again, the age old question that was fought over during the Destiny War also comes into play. Can you change your destiny? Yes. The outcome proved it._

_But if you are not consciously able to control your life, can you control your destiny?_

_If you are of two beings, does your destiny become intertwined with the other? Or do you end up with two completely unique and separate destinies to fulfill? Perhaps._

Perhaps. . .

OLTD

(Apologies for this extended author note. Complete note with additional information is available through links on my profile.)

Calendar Set-up for Gaea

Based on the idea that the Destiny War brought unity to the people of Gaea, a new referencing was born. Before Destiny (BD) includes all time before the war and the remainder of the year after the war to the beginning of the new year. Gaea United (GU) is the new era. (Think BC/AD or BCE/CE.) However, to assist in the removal of confusion as time progresses in the fic, I shall be noting how much time has passed since the beginning of the story for all Gaea related times (well, when dates begin to correspond to proper events).

A _Year_ on Gaea will be noted as a _Cycle_.  
A _Month_ will be a _Color_.  
A _Week_ will be a _Sep_.  
A _Day_ will be a _Moon_.

January will correspond with White (Green in Fanelia).  
February will correspond with Purple.  
March will correspond with Gold (Black in Fanelia).  
April will correspond with Green (White in Fanelia).  
May will correspond with Yellow.  
June will correspond with Orange.  
July will correspond with Aqua.  
August will correspond with Red.  
September will correspond with Brown.  
October will correspond with Silver.  
November will correspond with Blue.  
December will correspond with Black (Gold in Fanelia).

Re-mastered Prologue August 4, 2012


	2. Ch1: Disparate Times

Title: One Legend, Two Destinies  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandoms: Gundam Wing, Escaflowne  
Pairings: past friendship Van/Hitomi

GW VoE

Chapter One: Disparate Times

December 27th, After Colony 194  
Location: Unlabeled Rebel Base, L1 Colony Cluster

A constant tone rang through the air. A still body lay out on a clinical bed, tubes entering the mouth and leading to the arms. Wire leads spread out across the body.

"Damn it!" Dr. J slammed his clawed limb against the safety glass. "All that hard work for nothing!" The monitor continued to display no life signs, mocking the scientist's burgeoning outrage.

Dr. J's efforts to find the Perfect Soldier to spearhead his campaign in Operation Meteor continued to be inhibited by the faulty, inferior people that had been chosen to be candidates for Gundam Pilot. The broken body on the opposite side of the glass was the seventh to succumb to the weakness of their mind. _I was certain this one would not fail. So young, a protégé to the legendary assassin Odin Lowe and nearly succeeding in assassinating that whelp Treize at a mere eight years. Seven years of training and his mind broke with the introduction of Zero to his regimen. Pathetic._

"Lansing! Report." Dr. J barked across the PA to one of the other doctors assisting him. _Time to sort through the damages._

A frustrated male drew away from the corpse. A grumbling quality personified the curt reply. _/Neural activity grew chaotic with prolonged exposure to the Zero system. Simulator data streams and video playback overlaid with neuroleptic response patterns suggest an inability to cope with the information received from Zero. The subject coped marginally longer than the last six candidates, most likely due to the early exposure to violent situations./_

Dr. J growled. _Disappointing._ "Hook that carcass up to the Neural Emulator and extract every last bit of information from it. Perhaps 'Square One' will shift closer to the desired goal." J turned away from the glass as his lackey did as he was bade. _Where am I to find someone to train and prepare for Operation Meteor in three months?_

GW VoE

1st Cycle of Before Destiny, Gold the 27th Moon  
Location: New Atlantis, Capital of Fanelia

^_Folken? Are you awake?^ _A tentative mental missive, 'unbecoming of a king' as Van's advisors would have said, brought Folken from his contemplative pre-doze state.

"You may enter, brother." Folken missed being a part of his brother's daily life. When Van was young, Folken was the center of his world. Since the end of the Destiny War, Folken returned to the once familiar position, the one wish he had made as he laid dying upon the floor in the Emperor's chambers. _Damned Draconian blood._ Folken mused. The energy of the Zone of Absolute Fortune in combination with his accursed blood prevented his death to fulfill Folken's deepest desire. Knowing Van as he did, Folken had procured a non-descript leviship and left the borders of Zaibach. He traveled to the ruins of Fanelia, picking up any of the many dislocated citizens of Fanelia he could and sending word of the coming reconstruction.

The door slid open and shut admitting Van, Folken's ten cycles younger brother and the reigning king of Fanelia. Van's naturally tanned skin had paled considerably since the construction of the castle had completed. His normally bright, blood red eyes were a dull muddy brown in nearly black, bloodless sockets. He wore only his sleep pants and the ever-present pendant gifted to him by that strange girl, Hitomi. Van stood still, as if uncertain as to why he was present in his brother's chambers. Fidgeting slightly, he locked eyes with Folken. A few moments passed. "Sorry." Turning, Van's hand was stretched out toward the door, ready to leave as swiftly as he came.

"Van." He froze, hand still poised in preparation to open the door.

"What's wrong?" Folken didn't dare to raise his voice above a soft calm. No reply. "Van. Look at me."

Van turned only his head, not enough to actually make contact with Folken's form. _Close enough._ "Can't sleep?"

Tears slid down his cheeks as Van closed his eyes. Dropping his hand to his side, he nodded slowly in response. The rustling of sheets opened his eyes. Turning, a wan smile lit Van's face as he saw that Folken had shuffled over, clearing off the left side of the bed.

"C'mon." Folken sighed as Van swiftly assumed his favored position of comfort, his right ear pressed against Folken's chest, directly over his heart. Tears dropped onto his chest and silent sobs shook through him as Folken pulled his brother's slight form closer, carding his fingers through Van's dark locks. Folken concentrated on taking deep breaths to lull his little brother to sleep. The cessation of the vibrating sobs, giving way to gentle puffs of hot breath, caused Folken to smile sadly. Slowly, so as not to rouse him, Folken rolled Van away from his chest and onto the other pillow on the bed. A frown formed upon Van's brow before he shifted into a more comfortable position.

Folken sat up as he ran his metal hand through his hair. _Did I cause this?_ He slid out of bed, making sure the covers remained properly positioned about his brother's figure. Walking to his window, Folken peered up at the glittering stars in the night sky. He knew that his wish might possibly have been the cause of the instability within the energies that fed into Van's life. Folken also knew that he was not the only responsible party.

Hitomi's departure to the Mystic Moon, although well received by Van, tore through his defenses as a rejection of himself. Her unyielding acceptance of what Van was and why he was doing what he did had formed the basest of romantic feelings.

The connection Van had formed with Escaflowne, a connection forged of blood, bloodlust, and war, upon severance had torn through to his very core, ripping apart the foundation of his very essence as a king, the pounding heat of battle and bloodshed. Without the blood bond, Van's only connection to living outside of Folken was Merle, his best friend.

The oppression of the advisors, insisting that Van marry and produce an heir and cement alliances and address the problems of the increased population and the taxation of the people, forced Van to remain indoors throughout the hours of the moon.

Van's gentle soul and kind heart were slowly being crushed into a fine pulp. He needed to be outside, helping build the homes of the residents of a new Fanelia, a bigger, brighter, and more fruitful nation. He needed to be in the forest, hunting for food, gathering mushrooms and herbs. The sleepless nights and the pallor of his skin attested to the crumbling of Van's ability to remain in control. _If only I had not suggested Merle be sent to request assistance from the villagers of Arzas. She may not be what Van needs but she does help to keep him grounded, stable._

A whimper turned Folken back to the bed. In his sleep, Van had managed to shift the blankets off of himself. A shiver ran through his body. _The nights have been colder lately. I need to lecture him about wearing a tunic to bed._ Folken smiled as he fixed the sheets back into place. A shiver ran through his own body. Laughing quietly to himself, Folken climbed back into bed. _Should lecture myself at the same time._

Ten cycles Van was trained to defeat the dragon, spent a season at war, and peace was killing him.

Written June 23-24, 2012


	3. Ch2: Prelude to a Storm

Title: One Legend, Two Destinies  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandoms: Gundam Wing, Escaflowne

A/N: This is rewritten content, only the Theory/Prologue has remained the same. An informational chapter has been created on my LJ for those seeking some technical information on this story. The link is available on my profile page.

GW VoE

Chapter Two: Prelude to a Storm

1 BD, Gold the 28th Moon, the hour of Ripla (dawn)  
Location: Folken's chambers, Castile de Fanel, Fanelia

The sound of shuffling feet roused Folken from his slumber. A lightly frustrated groan issued from the other half of the bed. His sleep fogged mind cleared swiftly as he recalled the events of the previous night. _Van!_ Opening his eyes in alarm, Folken sought his brother's form, sighing in relief at the sight of him still maintaining a sleep state.

Van had shifted position as he slept, his face turned towards Folken. Van's face was scrunched up, strongly resistant to the process of waking. His hands had curled into fists, the strength they portrayed standing in contrast to the softness of the pillow they laid upon. A shiver shook his form, goose bumps lighting upon his arms. Folken noticed, for the first time, that Van had curled up in the night, obviously cold.

"Milord?" A young voice whispered.

Folken gasped, zeroing in on the chambermaid. On the sideboard, the maid had laid out a large ceramic bowl, a cleansing cloth, and a pitcher of heated water at the temporary bathing station. While the exterior of the castle had been completed, most of the interior had not been outfitted. The two brothers had agreed that the castle was not anywhere near as important as the rest of the Fanelian constituency. They had also agreed that Fanelia was in need of a newer presentation to the nations of Gaea, being referred to as a "backwards little country" throughout the Destiny War had stung both brothers. With the friendships Van had developed with Asturia and Freid and Folken's own previous high standing in the now ruined nation of Zaibach, developing the "backwards little country" into a nation of high repute would be a simple task.

"Shall I rouse him, lord?" The servant gestured lightly in Van's direction. Folken had never felt more grateful for Van's gentle demeanor. _Anyone else would not receive such reverent respect._

"No." Folken sighed. "Close the shutters, and fetch another blanket. He needs rest." Silently, Folken slid out from under the bed covers as the chambermaid did as she was bade. The pre-ripla light was swiftly blocked from the room while Folken gently gathered the bed clothes. The maid departed the room in search of the desired blanket, leaving Folken to tend his brother.

Gently, Folken drew back the covers, hoping the darkened room would help encourage his brother to remain un-woken. A groan, followed by a shiver more pronounced than earlier, precipitated a hiccough. Van's eyes opened a sliver, a whimper passing his lips. The bloodless look to his eyes had not abated from the previous night.

"Shh." Folken soothed. "Go back to sleep." Folken cheered silently as Van's eyes slid shut once more. Sighing, Folken tugged gently on his brother's legs, straightening them. A moue of discomfort contorted Van's face, accompanied by the slightest of whimpers and another shiver. Desperate, Folken began whistling an old Fanelian lullaby. Panting half-sobs poured forth. "C'mon, none of that." He chided, folding the blankets up to Van's waist. The panting breaths subsided as Folken tucked the blankets around Van's legs. _It has been so many cycles since I've done this._

The door clicked. "Bring it here." Folken said without turning. A heavy white _ursal_ pelt from the northern region of Meerfrost was presented to him. _Perfect!_ Laying the covering out, Folken unfolded it to Van's waist. A contented sigh slipped out. Carefully, Folken unfolded Van's fisted hands, dragging them even with his torso and wrapping them about Folken's own pillow. The original bed covers, followed shortly by the pelt, were laid completely out, covering Van to his shoulders. Van snuffled into the pillow, before drifting back into sleep. Satisfied, Folken turned to his morning ablutions.

"Will that be all this morning?" Kicking himself for forgetting, Folken turned to the maid. In all fairness, it had been many a cycle since he had a servant that was not a soldier or apprentice.

"You may leave." Folken acknowledged the helpful servant. She nodded and turned to go. As she opened the door, Folken stopped her. "Wait. Send two guards to the door." Knowing she would do as requested, Folken hastily completed his morning routine, certain that those bastards who thought they were in charge would tear apart the entire castle as soon as they felt Van's ear was theirs to burden. Light tapping at the door came seconds after he completed his task. A light murmuring issued from the bed. _^It's alright, Van. Go back to sleep.^_ A sigh escaped as he nestled back into the bed sheets.

Silently opening and closing the door, Folken took a deep breath, closing his eyes for but a moment. Resolved to do what must be done, he opened his eyes to see two of Van's most loyal guards. _Clever little minx._ Folken mentally noted the need to thank the young maid.

"You sent for us, Lord Folken?" One of the guards asked.

Swallowing hard, Folken nodded harshly. "Yes. No one is to disturb these quarters. No one. Especially the advisors. Understand?" Folken stared into both guards' eyes, conveying as much as he could how important this was. He nearly sighed in relief as he saw understanding light in both faces.

"Of course, Lord Folken." The answer in unison. They both moved to the outer edges of the door frame.

"Thank you." Folken whispered as he headed off to the council chambers.

GW VoE

December 28th, AC 194  
Location: L1 Colony, Dr. J's office

Dr. J scowled as negative results continually scrolled across the screen. _An entire cluster with no one suitable!_ J impatiently tapped his fingers against the desk top. **Beep!** Acknowledging the computer terminal, J opened the result. **No Matches Found.** It practically screamed failure at the mechanical engineer. Frustrated, J stood from his chair to pace.

Delinquents: no matches.  
Military hopefuls: no matches.  
War orphans: no matches.  
Regular orphans: no matches.  
Medical John Does: no matches.  
Destitute males: no matches.

J had even checked OZ's list of potentials: no matches.

There were no potentials anywhere near the quality he desired. J was loath to search for lesser material. He still had time to do this right. It was always possible that one with the right stature, the perfect specimen, could be there, waiting to be discovered. In fact it was highly likely. Knowing that his fellow scientists would already have decided on their final pilot by now meant he only had to fight OZ and the potential that the Alliance may stumble across someone of value. _However unlikely that would be._

J stopped in his pacing. _Yes. That's what I should do!_ Activating the comm system, J started to bark his orders. "Expand the search parameters! Check all colony clusters. In the event that no matches are yielded, check Earth-bound candidates."

_I will find my Perfect Soldier!_

Written July 24-August 9, 2012


End file.
